Innate Immunity and Leishmania Vaccination Strategies

Despite the ubiquity and severity of parasitic diseases and our desire to prevent them, there are no effective antiparasitic vaccines in widespread clinical use. This review focuses on strategies for development of a vaccine against cutaneous leishmaniasis as a representative parasitic disease of paramount interest to dermatologists and all who care for patients who live in or travel to the developing world. Any effective strategy will require attention to the central role that host innate immunity plays during induction of durable resistance to these virulent protozoa. The cell types, receptors, and molecules of the innate immune system that will likely play a role in any effective vaccine against cutaneous leishmaniasis are reviewed.